Book excerpt: This second edition of Practical Accounts & Bookkeeping in easy steps has been updated to cover the latest UK legislation. It starts with the basics you need to know to record your day-to-day transactions and how they appear in Nominals, Trial Balance, Profit & Loss and the Balance Sheet. It then covers: Understanding accounts and why they are important the legal documents required when preparing accounts What happens if accounts are not submitted in time and when accounts need to be sent to authorities Creating a balance sheet using sales ledgers, purchase ledgers and nominal ledgers VAT – registering, charging and reclaiming Annual adjustments – Prepayments, Accruals, etc. Calculating Profit for tax and Capital Accounts Key Accounting Principles: Double Entry, Direct and Indirect costs, Fixed and Current Assets, Depreciation, Capital Allowance, and more! This book will help you make sense of the 'daunting' accounts world. It will help you to spot problems in the accounts and explain them to others using the correct terminology. It will also show you how computer software has been designed to simplify the processes. Master basic bookkeeping, then work through the book at your own pace to get a deeper understanding of Accounts. Practical Accounts & Bookkeeping in easy steps, 2nd Edition is ideal for business owners as well as students. Includes examples to practice, and a Questions and Answers section to test yourself!